Lisa, Thank you for the input and the invitation. I have meant to get to the hack fests, buy Saturdays are touching go. I'll make it a point to get to the next one. I've been dabbling in metasploit and alien vault. I'm also not afraid of the contract deal, it's actually been nice to be a contractor with the exception of 401k matching. Thank you, Blake On Mar 12, 2013 7:27 PM, "Lisa Kachold" wrote: > Hello Blake, > > There is always a big need for Linux/Unix/Windows security people. > Security generally involves all attack vectors in a corporate environment. > The type of work you do often centers around scanning and/or ticket > hockey type work. You are generally told to state X irregardless of the > technical details of the issue. > > I have worked extensively in Unix/Linux/Internet Service Provider > security, and I prefer Linux/Unixt systems administration. > > Getting certifications is your ticket to working at any of the big shops. > Also, there are a good deal of contract positions open right now, because > people are gun shy (pardon my pun) of recession based changes. All of us > have had to come to terms with the reality of contract work (the gold watch > and retirement plan went away with our parents generation) and short term > employment. The average Linux Administrator position is about 26 months > (varies by survey). Security contracts are often 12 months or less. > > You certainly need to keep up with all security related news and use some > of the tools (Metasploit, aircrack-ng, nmap, ssh tunneling) and > technologies (network OSI stack up related to TCP/IP. > > Come to our Hackfests at DeVry University the first Saturday of every > month 11-2, where we have more than a few people who can get into anything, > work in some of the big shops in town, and join us as we attack virtual > systems (setup with multiple exploits for your edification). > > Hope to see you there? > > > On Tue, Mar 12, 2013 at 6:55 PM, blake gonterman wrote: > >> Hello all, >> >> I attended a few of the stammtisches a few years back, but kind of fell >> out of the Linux community... >> >> I've been working at a medium sized company trying to figure out where to >> go next. A coworker of mine is suggesting I go down the road of Unix >> security. To that end, I've built a small lab at home and have started >> getting back into learning to tools available. I'm not looking for a >> glamorous pentesting position, just a functional security position focused >> on Linux. >> >> I'm curious what people already in the field are focused on these days. I >> have quite a bit of experience with FIM (tripwire) and I'm focused on >> mcafee Web gateway at work currently. Once my contract is over at the end >> of the year, I want to focus on more Linux relayed work. >> >> So, is there a need for a dedicated Linux security person here in the >> valley, or should I focus on the sysadmin portion and work security into >> the mix? >> >> By the way, I have the RHCSA certificate, I just decided standard >> sysadmin work wasn't for me. >> >> Any input is welcome. >> >> Thank you, >> Blake >> >> --------------------------------------------------- >> PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org >> To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: >> http://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >> > > > > -- > > (503) 754-4452 Android > (623) 239-3392 Skype > (623) 688-3392 Google Voice > ** > it-clowns.com > Chief Clown > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > --------------------------------------------------- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.phxlinux.org > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > http://lists.phxlinux.org/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss >